Japan, China defense heads agree on more exchanges

TOKYO - TOKYO (AP) - Japan and China have agreed to conduct joint exercises and expand their military exchanges, the defense ministers from the two countries said Friday.

Japanese Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa and his Chinese counterpart, Liang Guanglie, met for about two hours on Friday and agreed on a range of exchanges to deepen their ties and improve communication.

They also agreed to conduct joint exercises "at an appropriate time" to prepare for natural disaster relief and at-sea rescues.

"One of the things we agreed on was to conduct high-level exchanges over the next year," Kitazawa said. "It demonstrates great progress in our bilateral relations that we have agreed to conduct our first joint maneuvers."

Japan's relations with China have been improving lately, particularly on the economic front, but the two have been at odds over territory to Japan's south, where rich fishing areas and natural resources are located and the border between the two nations remains in dispute.

Tokyo has also expressed deep concerns over China's growing military strength and swelling defense budget. China's navy, in particular, is improving rapidly and encounters between ships from the countries are growing more frequent.

Kitazawa said Tokyo sees relations with Beijing as crucial and said Japan will try to develop greater trust with its giant neighbor, on both the security and economic fronts.

Liang said the two ministers also discussed regional security issues and said they "have a great deal in common."

"We intend to continue strengthening our ties," he said. "Our relations are very important, as is our mutual growth and prosperity."